Peanut Butter filled Chocolate Cupcakes with Chocolate Ganache Frosting & Chocolate Cupcakes with Cream Filling and Buttercream Frosting!

Chocolate Cupcake with Cookie Dough center and Chocolate Buttercream!

Carrot Cupcake with Almond Cream Cheese Frosting!

Just thought I would put a couple pictures out there....

Tried out a couple new cupcake flavors over the weekend. While the flavor was definitely dead on (with several taste testers agreeing) the overall look of the cupcakes left something to be desired... First cupcake was a White Chocolate Chipotle with a White Chocolate Ganache covered in sanding sugar. The White Chocolate Chipotle cookie is such a hit, I had to try it in a cupcake! The tickle of spiciness is not quite as strong as the cookie (I was expecting it to be stronger, actually), but the flavor, texture, and moistness was all very good. I may leave this cupcake as it is or I may try to make a whipped frosting to give it some height. This was definitely the most eye appealing of the two cupcakes! Cupcake number 2 was a Strawberry n Cream cupcake. A moist vanilla sponge topped with cream and strawberry glaze with a tasty strawberry placed on top. That glaze did not want to stay on the cupcake and took the strawberry with it! :( You can't learn without failure, however, so next time that delicious glaze will have some chopped up strawberry in it and will be a wonderful filling for this cupcake topped with a cream frosting! Live and learn!

I had a great time this weekend at the EWGA Kickoff! Not being a golfer, it was quite interesting to meet people who have such a passion for their hobby...hmm, sounds kind of like me and my baking! :)

I just thought I would post a couple pictures of my set up at the event...

I took cupcakes, cookies, and golf ball suckers! I had treat bags with my label for anyone who wanted to take a surprise home to their family and, of course, cupcake holders for those special treats!

I had classic flavors as well as gourmet. In this picture you can see the Cookie Dough cupcakes and the Peanut Butter Brownie cupcakes, as well as the golf ball suckers and the Frosted Sugar Cookies!

This is just a close up of those cute little golf ball suckers!

Here you can see the other flavors of cookies, which were...Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip, Chocolate Chip, White Chocolate Chipotle, and Mint Chocolate.

And last, but not least, I had Chocolate Spice and Chocolate Guinness cupcakes to tempt and tease!

It was a great time, I'm really glad that I went!

Got a busy Saturday planned. I was invited to be a vendor at the EWGA (Executive Women's Golf Association) Kickoff this weekend.

I have been trying to decide what nummy goodness I will be taking with me and I believe that I have come up with the perfect menu! Cookies, Cupcakes, and Chocolate Suckers!

My Chocolate Suckers are in the shape of golf balls and come in an assortment of colors!

For the cupcakes, I have decided on Chocolate Guiness with an Irish Creme buttercreme frosting (I know this one is a crowd pleaser) and a new flavor that I will be trying for the first time...I know, I know, do I really want to take an untested flavor to an event??? I fully believe the name says it all...Cookie Dough Cupcake with Chocolate Chip buttercreme frosting! It has raw cookie dough in the center!!! Who doesn't love cookie dough??? And for everyone out there concerned about the raw eggs...this recipe doesn't have eggs in it!!! I'm doing a happy dance for this! Be glad I don't have a webcam...lol.

As for the cookies I'm taking a few classic flavors and a couple new flavors, one that is quickly becoming a popular favorite with my customers. I will be taking my Frosted Sugar, Chocolate Chip, and Peanut Butter, for everyone who enjoys classic flavors and I'm also taking a sweet Chocolate Mint with a minty chocolate drizzle and a spicy White Chocolate Chipotle (this is the one that is trying to take the number one spot away from Frosted Sugar). The last two flavors are for the people who like to step outside the box every now and then and be able to say "I've tried that" when conversations turn to extraordinary foods!

I can't wait, this weekend is going to be so much fun!

Tried some new flavors over the weekend for my cookies and have deemed them successful! The taste testers have all agreed also :)



White Chocolate Chipotle...beautiful golden cookie with tasty white chocolate morsels and a hint of spicyness right at the end of the taste. I wish I could have recorded one of the tasters reactions. I asked a little girl, maybe 8 or 9 years old, if she would be a taster for me and I explained what it was going to taste like. Her look was one of distrust that anything that sounded that wacky could possibly taste good. She asked me cautiously if she had to eat it now, in front of me, I told her no, she could take it home and eat it and just let us know what she thought the next time she came to the shop. She and her mom walked away, and it wasn't a minute later she comes stomping up to the register with a big grin and bright, sparkly eyes and just spurts out "that was sooo good, I love this cookie." It is wonderful to see the excitement in a child after they've conquered a fear and found out they were rewarded for trying something they were unsure of!

My other cookie, while it is a fairly common one, it's one that I hadn't tried to make yet so I was just hoping that my measurements were ok. They were. I made a Chocolate Mint Cookie with a Chocolate Mint drizzle across the top of the cookie. Honestly, I will always pick a golden cookie over a chocolate cookie, but that's just my preference, and trust me, if there are only chocolate cookies, I don't have a problem eating them...lol! My tasters all gave me the same response, it was an excellent cookie with just the right amount of mint! I asked everyone who tried the cookie if they thought it would be better with chocolate chips and every single one of them said "no." They said it tasted perfect and that the chips would take away from the flavor.

I must say, that means I had a very good weekend!

In honor of St. Patrick's Day, I had to make something that would pay homage to the holiday as well as turn on salivary glands and make them work overtime! I opted to use two of my favorite ingredients...chocolate and beer.

There's just nothing like a chocolate cupcake mixed with alcohol!

It seems an appropriate treat to celebrate St. Patty's Day, but trust me when I say these cupcakes will get made more than just the month of March! I can't wait to eat another one! Mmmmm...

I wish I had a better set up for my sweet treats! There are so many flavors that I want to make for my loyal customers, but I just don't have the right equipment. I really need a refrigerated display case so that I can make sinfully delicious delicacies that will have people going mad just at the thought of mashing their molars into them.

Until I can get a refrigerated display case I'm stuck with having to create sweet morsels that can withstand sitting out on a counter. Oh...what I would give to make cream cheese frostings, moist cupcakes with a pudding center, whoopie pies, and all the other goodies my loyal customers are missing out on!

Until then, I will persevere with the sweetness of what I can make for my followers, but the time will come when they will know what "heaven on earth" truly means.

I was asked to do cookies for a rehearsal dinner coming up this weekend. I can't express how excited I am. I've already got the decorations piped and will start baking the cookies today. Will have to actually make one with the decorations on it just to make sure it looks as fantastic as it does in my mind...oh, and will have to taste it to make sure it tastes as fantastic as well. Wonder if I should suffer through that or let my kids...lol.

I should've taken some pictures when I was doing the piping, but I didn't think about it. I will snap some tonight of both the piping and the finished product.

Well, after my last post, I did create a cookie that is deserving of it's own spot on the Cookie Nook menu. Now all I have to do is name it.

I took my basic batter and added some White Chocolate Chunks, Pecans, and a hint of Chipotle powder that gave this cookie mouth watering flavors of sweet, salty, and a kick at the end.

My hubby was not overly impressed with this cookie, but that's because he really doesn't enjoy nuts in his cookies (I'm not crazy about nuts either, to be honest). Overall the majority of taste testers had nothing but good to say about this flavor combination so I will be introducing it at Cookie Nook once I get it named.

I'm open to suggestions on the name...

I love spicy foods. What has your average person sputtering and reaching for a glass of water tastes really good to me. Hot sauce, jalepenos, chili peppers, wasabi, you name it...I love it. So to me it only seems natural to try to incorporate some of that spicy into my sweets. I tried, not too long ago, to create a wasabi and orange treat, but my mixture was off...don't get me wrong, those cupcakes were still really good, but it just didn't have the flavor mix I was looking for.

Later today, I will be trying another mixture. I have this awesome Chipotle Red Pepper that I think will make a fantastic flavor mix with white chocolate. I will post some pictures when I'm done and let you know how it turns out.

My mouth is watering already!

I've had some ideas floating around in my head lately and finally found the time last night to see what I could create from said ideas. I think overall I was successful, but it still wasn't quite what I was thinking in my head.

The cupcakes were very tasty, as usual, but they didn't give me the explosion of flavor I was hoping for. I took a basic chocolate recipe and added some wasabi and orange to it looking for a sweet, savory, melt in your mouth cupcake that would give just a little kick at the end. All of my taste testers have said that they are delicious, but no one is really getting the kick I had hoped for...not quite back to the drawing board, but some playing around with amounts (and maybe even flavors) is definitely going to be happening.

As far as my "cookie on a stick" goes, I've known this is possible and have had several ideas for different bouquets I want to do, but I've always had problems with the cookie shape coming out wrong or being too heavy for the stick to actually be able to create a bouquet successfully. I can now say that I have fixed my issues (in the kitchen, at least...lol) and am eager to create beautiful bouquets that will put a smile on anyone's face.

I've got an idea I'm thinking of trying. I love the familiar flavors of cookies such as Frosted Sugar (my personal favorite), Chocolate Chip, Peanut Butter, and so on, but I really want to be able to stand apart and offer unique flavors as well.

I have a Chocolate Spice cookie that I offer and it is really tasty! It has some Asian spices in it that mix wonderfully with the chocolate. I think I want to try to make another Chocolate cookie with some different Asian spices, some that are a little more "spicy" to the tastebuds. I have an idea in mind, but if anyone else has an idea, I would love to hear what it is...

Desserts have been a specialty of mine for several years now and when the opportunity arose to open Cookie Nook, I couldn't say no. I serve a variety of cookies and cupcakes that are familiar flavors like Frosted Sugar, Chocolate Chip, and Peanut Butter, to name a few, but I also like to play with flavors and spices and have come up with a few gourmet flavors like a Chocolate cookie with asian spices topped off with a light, fluffy Lemon Buttercream frosting. That particular flavor has become a regular that I offer daily.

My love of baking allows me to create sweet treats that will put a smile on any face and a Mmmm in any belly. Besides the cookies and cupcakes, I love to create Cheesecakes. Any flavor from the classic New York to flavors that include fruits and chocolates and just about anything I can dream up, they are a favorite at any party.

I'm hoping to incorporate Brownies soon at Cookie Nook, but I have to play around with some recipes first before I put just any brownie out for my customers. I have 4 wonderful taste testers that live with me, husband and 3 children, who always let me know that they are doing me a favor by testing these recipes!